The Brazilian Justice has initiated the process for ex-soccer player Robson de Souza ‘Robinho’ to serve in the country the sentence of nine years in prison handed down in Italy for an alleged crime of rape.
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The president of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ), Maria Thereza de Assis Moura, explained this Friday that the request for compliance with the sentence presented by Italian courts is, in principle, in accordance with the treaties that exist between the two countries.
the first conclusions
“In a first examination, the necessary requirements seem to be present,” explained the magistrate in a document released this Friday, in which she notified about the start of the judicial analysis that will respond to the request of the Italian Justice.
According to the judge, this “first examination” indicates that Robinho had the right to a fair trial in Italy, in which he was “regularly defended”, and that the process that concluded with his conviction was carried out within the strict framework of law.
The STJ, the second highest court in Brazil, will limit itself to a technical evaluation of the trial carried out in Italy and of the “observance of due process”, without going into the “merits” of the accusations that led to the sentence.
The facts
The former player for Santos, Real Madrid and Milan, among other clubs, was sentenced to nine years in prison after being found guilty of participating, along with a group of friends, in the rape suffered by a young Albanian woman in a Milanese nightclub in 2013.
The footballer had a contract with Milan, in which he played between 2010-2014, and was tried in absentia in a process whose sentence has been ratified by the Italian Supreme Court and by the Court of Appeal.
What the Brazilian Constitution says
The Brazilian Constitution does not provide for the extradition of nationals, but it does provide that a citizen convicted abroad, as is the case, serve the sentence in the country if the process complies with due law and the sentence does not exceed thirty years in prison.
Robinho’s own lawyer, Leonardo Pantaleão, admitted last week that the Italian Justice’s request for the sentence to be carried out in Brazil complies with legal requirements, although he hinted that his client could still appeal. when summoned by the STJ.
The former soccer player, now 39 years old, lives in the city of Santos, the cradle of the club where he began his career, since 2020, when he retired from active sports.
